JEE result eventually decided my fate: Priyanka Gaharwar

Graphic Era Hill University

As a kid, I dreamt a lot about superheroes. In fact, I always wanted to be one.

But as I grew up, I came to know a lot of things I did not know earlier. I grew up to be an adultwho should know what she wants to do in life, an adult who must have a clear vision. An adult who has to be an engineer, and not just any engineer, but an IITian.

Well, yes, IIT had the same brand value back that it has now. It has always been a dream for almost all the students and their families. And it especially was a dream of those students who did not know what they wanted to do in life.

As I passed class 10^th with really good grades, I, like lakhs of other students, I too was took PCM and got into the rat race of being an IITian, probably because I was too naive to think about anything else or rather, too stupid to do something other than the most popular course ‘engineering.’

It wasn’t that I was bad at academics, but just that I did not want to do Engineering. Although I liked Science, my love was something else. Something I always craved for, something that I am crazy for, something I would love doing and something that would make me happy.  As time passed, I was still arguing with my family and with my own self as to what I would be doing after class 12^th. In My 12^th examinations I did my best to prove myself; I did whatever it took, from getting up at 4 AM to being awake for the entire night. I knew class 12^th would come once and only once. I had this chance to prove myself and make a good future.

Oh yes, like million others, I too fell in the trap of ‘good percentage=successful life.’ I believed that your percentage could bring you the world and could help you land the best job and a perfect life.

Meanwhile, JEE Main happened and for me, it was a terrifying phase. JEE Main was my biggest threat that could devastate me if anything went wrong. Going contrary to the trend, being a PCM student, I was not interested in JEE Main, but had to attempt it under parental and societal pressure since I had to live as per their ‘expectations’, right?

JEE eventually did manage to decide my fate, when I got a shocking result in my Mains exam. I was staring at the screen of my laptop with 18 marks flashing in front of me. I could not have been more embarrassed and more ashamed of myself at the moment. I mean, what in the world did I do with my exam? How could I end up with such a score?

Hours passed, so did days. My family was deeply disappointed in me, and so was I with myself because no matter how much I disliked JEE, 18 marks was not what I deserved.

And then, it was the time for class 12 result. I was thankful to my class 12^th percentage. I had scored 84% and ended up in a very good college. JEE was still a big haunt for me but I had cried enough for it, and now, the time had come to change a few things and stop being a loser.

I took admission in BCA at Graphic Era Hill University, Dehradun and along from academics, I started the journey of exploring myself. I was doing well in academics and meanwhile, I started giving tuitions to students of 6^th-9^th grade. I joined an amazing organization where I imparted education to underprivileged children. I also started writing and became a content writer. I am doing well in life and I treasure happiness in it.

I believe that to stand, you need to fall first, and JEE was the one downfall that made me rise up to new heights. Now, instead of regretting and crying over my past, I focus more on the future and work on the present.

It is okay to score less, some days.

It is okay to feel bad, sometimes.

It is okay to fall, hard.

But it is never okay to give up and be the loser that you always feared being.

Be someone by looking at whom people say, “because of you, I didn’t give up”.

Keep the fire burning inside you and strive until the volcano of success comes out of you! It’s never a failure, it is always a learning!

About the Author:

My name is Priyanka Gaharwar, and I am from Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Currently, I am in my final year of BCA at Graphic Era Hill University (GEHU). I am an ambivert, and. I love talking and sharing ideas, knowledge and thoughts. As a person, I am an eternal optimist but I believe sometimes it is fine to let go of a few things so that better things can take place. Five years down the line, I see myself at the top position in a leading organization.